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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. hand — help
  3. chest — of your body
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. present — the time now
  6. cell — in biology
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. present — there
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. object — a thing
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. object — to protest
  14. cell — a phone
  15. chest — of your body
  16. content — happy
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. hand — in cards
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. content — the amount
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. object — an aim
  23. chest — a box
  24. foot — a measure

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com